Stargate Atlantis: Unexpected Arrival
by summoner2100
Summary: A slow start to the morning finds the team coming into contact with a previously unknown vessel, as well as, Sam's annoyance at Dr Zelenka..
1. Chapter 1

**Ok, here is the new story that I had an idea for. I hope it turns out alright.**

**Thanks to Arones for beta reading this. **

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Samantha Carter looked on from the control room as the kawoosh ejected from the Stargate. A voice came from behind her, directed towards the general control room as the team below stood, waiting to proceed. "Wormhole established, Colonel." Chuck told her as he slid his chair across to another station and away from the DHD. Sam glanced back towards Chuck and then turned her attention to the team below where Sheppard, Ronan, and McKay were waiting for acknowledgment.

"You have a go, Colonel Sheppard. God speed." Sam called down from the railing she was leaning on. She smiled as she said it, remembering all the times that General Hammond said it to them on their trips through the gate. Now it was her sending people through the gate. Since she had taken command of Atlantis, she had realised how hard it must have been for him to let people go.

Sheppard looked up. He removed his hand from the butt of the gun that was strapped to his shoulder and gave a quick salute of acknowledgment. The salute was more to show Sam that he had heard, rather than a gesture of rank.

Sheppard turned back towards the others, and rested both of his hands on the rifle, one on top of the other, as he often did, "McKay, Ronan. Move out."

Ronan stepped forward flipping his gun from its holster and aiming it in front of him as he walked through the gate. Sheppard started to tell him it was just a recon and he didn't need the gun, but he had disappeared through the gate before Sheppard could say anything. He turned his attention back to McKay and with a sideways tilt of the head told him to get through the gate and then followed up disappearing into the event horizon.

As the Colonel went through the gate shut down and Sam stood from leaning on the railing. She felt a pain in her hands as she moved and looked at the offending limbs. They were red from where she had been pressed against the metal. Sam rubbed them together gently massaging them, as if it would help with the pain. It did a little as she walked across the walkway to her office.

No sooner had she sat at her desk that she saw Dr Keller walking across the walkway through the open plan walls that the Ancients had seemed too favour. She smiled as the women walked in and pushed her laptop open with one hand as she greeted her, "Dr Keller." Sam said with a smile, "What is it I can do for you today?" She knew that something was coming. Sam's mind ran through all the alternatives quickly as she tended to do before an answer could be given.

"I've told you before," Keller stated as she sat in the seat opposite, "Call me, Jennifer."

Sam smirked. She wasn't used to this lack of protocol, but she was slowly coming around to it. "Very well, Jennifer. What can I do for you?"

Jennifer crossed one leg over the other, and placed her hands on her knee as she spoke, "We have this issue in the lab at the moment, a protogean spore that's almost starting to overgrow the lab." She started in as Sam's eyes showed a hint of recognition.

"Yes, I'm aware of it." She told Jennifer. "From P4X-356, if memory serves." Sam added checking her—as O'Neill would say—internal hard drive to see if she was accurate.

Jennifer nodded. "That's right." She confirmed as she slipped her fingers inside each other and grasped her knee towards her. "I have some treatments I would like to try that should reduce the spread and hopefully return the spore back to its original size."

"So, what's the problem?" Sam asked wondering if this was going and where she thought it might be going.

"Well, I'm short staffed at the moment. What with the teams' off-world helping with the plague research…" Jennifer told her and continued, "And those here have been working for forty-eight hours. I've already told them to get some rest. We're running on a skeleton shift at the moment."

Sam already knew where this was headed and she tried to resist a smile of amusement as Jennifer finished what she was saying.

"Anyway, I was wondering if you would be free to assist. It would certainly help having a senior officer nearby if anything was to go wrong." Jennifer stated with a small smirk on her face that turned into a look of worry. "Not that I'm expecting anything to go wrong." The woman added quickly, trying to re-assure herself more than Sam as she unknowingly picked her nails on her leg.

"I would be honoured to help." Sam pushed a file to the side of the desk. "To tell you the truth, it would get my mind off these personnel evaluations for a while, which would be nice. A chance to do some actual lab sounds like fun."

Jennifer rose from her chair and smiled at the thought of someone liking lab work as much as she. "Great. I'll see you in about two hours then." Jennifer turned and began walking out of the room—a small skip in her step—as she began to make her way across the room.

"Looking forward to it." Sam called out to the young woman's back as she stepped out and strolled across the office walkway. Sam turned back to her laptop and pushed it open. The screen powered into life, but that was as far as she got before she heard Chuck's voice calling from the control room.

Sam reluctantly stood from her desk and straightened her uniform before she made her way towards the voice. As she crossed the walkway, Sam wondered how General Hammond managed to maintain a somewhat cheery disposition. Chuck turned in his chair as she approached.

"Yes, Chuck. What is it?"

"Long range scans have picked up a vessel moving towards our position."

"Wraith?" Sam asked as she moved around the control panel to get a better look at the glass screen hanging from behind. A green dot blinked in one corner, and Sam could see that it was only about a sector away.

"Unsure." Chuck replied as he pressed the controls on the station and a hazy image of the approaching vessel flickered to life on the screen. She tilted her head to the side a fraction, but the blurry image still did not resemble a Wraith ship, or a replicator cruiser for that matter.

"A possible first contact situation?" She queried, turning to look at Chuck and back at the monitor after he shrugged his shoulders. Sam thought for a moment as she stared at the mysterious ship that graced the screen.

"Better not take a chance." She said to Chuck in a strong commanding tone. "Raise the cloak."

The technician slid his chair along the control panel and over to the edge of a second console.

"Cloak engaged." He replied as he pushed a few buttons that were in front of him and looked back up at the display screen. There was no change in the running of the control room, but from the outside the city shimmered and disappeared as the cloaking field fell down around it.

Sam looked up at the screen a bit longer, as if she could see through it and suddenly everything was going to become clear as to who, or what the ship was – but it didn't happen. The ship remained a ghostly haze of static as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Keep me apprised of any changes to the ships movements." Sam told the room as she began to walk around the console and over to the stairs at the back. She grabbed a tablet off the top of one of the consoles as she passed and tucked it under her arm.

"Aye, Commander." Chuck replied as he turned back to the ancient machines and began to talk to the crew member beside him.

Sam changed her step towards the mess hall thinking that she should get some food in before meeting up with Jennifer. The corridors were strangely devoid of people for such an early hour of the afternoon. Sam shrugged it off assuming a lot of those in the expedition were either off-world, or having time off like Jennifer's department.

Even as Sam approached the mess hall, she noticed that there weren't many people lounging in plastic chairs. She walked over to the table to see what was there. She glanced back over her shoulder as she noticed two men hunched over the table, a chess board between them. Each was staring at the board so she wasn't sure whose turn it actually was.

Sam shrugged it away and turned back to the food table. Those two were always there. Sometimes she wondered if they actually did any work, and made a mental note to follow up on it in the personnel reviews. She turned back to the table and reaching out with her free hand carefully grasped a bottle of water along with a sandwich pack and moved over to the table at the centre of the room.

Putting the water bottle and the tablet down, Sam pulled out the chair and sat. She peeled open the plastic cover of the sandwich and hit the power button on the tablet. As it loaded she tapped on the screen and a page full of text appeared. Smiling, she read the first sentence—My Dearest Sam.

No sooner had she done so than she was interrupted by a figure standing over her shoulder. Sam looked up to see Dr Zelenka casting a shadow across the table and blocking her light. He looked rather disjointed, but that wasn't an unusual occurrence from what she had seen since arriving on Atlantis. She placed the sandwich packet back on the table and took a quick mental bet with herself that it was about Rodney before she acknowledged him.

"What can I do for you, Dr Zelenka?"

Taking this as an invitation, Dr Zelenka pulled out the chair opposite and sat down in such a hurry that the chair squeaked across the polished floor. Sam cringed as Dr Zelenka leanedt forward and rested his elbows on the table.

"It's Dr McKay." He began before Sam could even get a word in. "We are trying to use the puddle jumpers to see if we can correct the instabilities in McKay's hyperspace generator to make it use-able on more than one trip."

"I understand." Sam replied, rolling her eyes "What seems to…"

"He has security locked the entire jumper bay!" Zelenka cried out, almost jumping out of his seat in frustration and cutting her off. "I've got people trying to break in now, but it's a tremendous waste of our time." He pushed himself off the table and back into his seat with an even more annoyed look on his face than Sam thought possible. She leaned back in her seat and tried to remain calm. She knew that getting annoyed at Radek—or McKay—wasn't going to help the situation.

"Why would he stop you from getting to the jumper bay?" Sam asked crossing her arms in front of her.

"He believes that because it was his creation, that he should be the one to fix it." Zelenka explained, his speech getting quicker and angry. "But it's more than that, he doesn't believe that his design is at fault, and it must be a problem with the jumper's engine capacity."

Zelenka swore something in Czech under his breath as he finished and Sam waited a second for him to calm before she spoke. Although, she knew he wouldn't. "I understand how Dr McKay can be." She said trying not to raise her voice higher than it needed to be. "I will have a word with him and discuss the situation when he returns. In the meantime, I assume you have other work you can continue with?"

Zelenka seemed to relax, and he nodded his agreement standing from the table. "What about the jumper bay?" He asked, a puzzled look crossing over his face as he wondered what to do.

"Leave it with me. I'll deal with it."

Nodded again, he turned away from the table and began moving to the door – stopping only to step beside the food and quickly grab a sandwich before exiting the room.

Sam sighed and turned back to her tablet. She raised the sandwich to her mouth as she read through the first page of reports that appeared on screen. She bit down into the sandwich and the bread squashed between her teeth as they split a piece off. As she started to chew the familiar sound of the radio attached to her ear began to crackle.

Luckily it was a small bite, and she swallowed quickly before raising her hand to her ear and acknowledging the call. "Carter here." She said into the mouthpiece sitting beside her cheek – which she preferred compared to the bulky handsets carried by SGC personnel.

Chuck's voice came through her ear. "Colonel, could you come to the control room?" She astutely picked up a little bit of a nervous tone in his voice. "We have a little bit of a situation."

Sam furrowed her brow, unsure of what Chuck could mean. "Could you elaborate?"

The reply that came through sounded unsure. "Uhh, I'm not sure I can, Colonel. It would probably be best if you see for yourself."

Sam breathed in and then out heavily with a sigh before she replied. "I'm on my way." Tapping the earpiece in her right ear, she stood from the table – pulling the tablet into her grasp. Sam grabbed the sandwich with her free hand and began to walk out into the corridor – munching down the food as she left.


	2. Chapter 2

**Here is the second chapter. Sorry this has taken so long, life kind of got in the way for a while there. I am currently working on chapter three and**

**hope to have it up in a much more timely fashion.**

**I hope you enjoy, and as usual, thanks to Arones for reading this.**

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The wormhole disengaged with a hiss as Sheppard stepped down off the pedestal and looked around. His boots crunched on loose gravel as he walked over to the DHD were McKay was crouched with the panel door open. The Colonel gave Ronan a questioning glance as if to ask what was happening and the large man just shrugged. Leaning on the top of the DHD and looking over at the ass end of McKay with his head inside the panel, he announced his presence. "McKay. What are you doing?"

There was a rummaging noise that came from inside the device before the scientist popped his head out and replaced the door. "I'm just checking on the status of the dialling device." He explained to a bewildered looking John along with an annoyed Ronan's.

"Why?"

Rodney stood up and brushed his hands over his clothes knocking off the dirt that had stuck to him as he returned John's look with one of his own. "The last team that came through reported some unusual glitches as they tried to dial out. Just making sure that everything is working correctly. Don't want to get stuck here."

"Find anything?" He asked wondering how long this would take. It obviously showed in his body language because the scientist ducked back down to check that the panelling was securely shut.

"Everything seems fine. I've replaced the secondary control crystal that seemed to be cracked but apart from that we're good to go."

Sheppard stood up straight and began walking towards the road, rolling his eyes with a look of disdain. Ronan slid his pistol back into the holster on his belt and followed after him, but his eyes moved around the scenery with anticipation like he was expecting someone—or something—to jump out at him. He looked nervous as he caught up to the Colonel.

"I saw that look." McKay exclaimed as he grabbed the strap of his bag and slung it over his shoulder while scrambling to catch up to the two men. He struggled with the other strap as he walked, trying to slip it over his second shoulder, but without much luck. "You know it has happened before where we've gotten stuck because of a malfunction in a dialling device. I was just trying to make sure we would all make it back on time."

Sheppard stopped in his tracks and turned back towards the scientist who was still struggling with the strap. "McKay, we have had a scientific camp here for the last month. If something was wrong with the dialling device we would have known about it before now." He stated as a matter of fact while wondering if he should have left the man on Atlantis.

Starting to look tired and frustrated, the Colonel stood watching the scientist as he rested his hands on the butt of his rifle. Some days he just didn't feel like dealing with McKay, this was almost becoming one of them. "Are you done?" He asked as he watched the man straighten himself and catch up to them. McKay nodded in acknowledgement as he noticed a scowl on John's face that he had seen many times. It was usually an annoyance thing, and usually with him. He decided he would keep his mouth shut, at least until they reached the camp.

Dropping the hands from their resting position John followed up behind Ronan, who had taken to marching ahead. No one spoke as they advanced down the gravel route towards the outpost. The only sound was the stones beneath their boots as they walked. John knew it was because of some condition or another in the atmosphere that no animal life could exist, but to be honest he had stopped listening at that point during the presentation.

The further down the path they went, the quieter it seemed to get. It didn't feel right to him, like something was off. A cold shiver made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up and he hoped he was wrong about what he was thinking. He really didn't want to deal with Wraith today.

It was a few minutes more of hearing nothing but the gravel under their feet when they saw the outline of the camp up ahead. Ronan was the first to notice it, and he lifted his arm in a stopping motion then indicated the camp.

John lifted his hand to his ear and, tapping on his earpiece, opened a radio channel. "Science Outpost Five. This is Sheppard. We are on approach. Please respond."

A crackle of static hissed through the radio and John's face screwed up in worry. He repeated his statement into the earpiece once more. Still no response. He exchanged a look of concern with Ronan, who seemed to be itching to go in and investigate, if John was reading the tension in his body properly.

He tried again to raise someone on the radio only this time with a more forceful tone in his voice, as if it was going to make someone pick up. The strong tone was met with an eerie silence. He looked over at Ronan again and tilted his head towards the camp, indicating him to move in. Ronan leapt forward without hesitation and headed towards the side entrance between two of the large white gazebos bordering the outpost. He slipped his gun out of its holster and was ready to fire at the first sign of any enemy. John moved around to the entrance on the other side, raising his P90.

McKay looked nervous and a little afraid as John and Ronan marched ahead. He scrambled for the pistol against his right leg, and moved cautiously up behind the other two men. He gripped the gun with both hands and checked around, even though Ronan had already been through the area.

Large cloth tents stood on either side of him as McKay made his way through. He walked around the corner of one and pushed aside the cloth to step in. He lowered the gun when he noticed that there was no one there; it was just lab equipment strewn about the makeshift tables in various states of use. A noise came from behind, and McKay swung around, raising the gun up as he did so.

Sheppard threw his hand up and stopped the pistol in mid-air as he twisted his head away from the business end of the barrel and pushed the weapon aside. "I thought you were getting the hang of this." He quipped as the look on Rodney's face turned to surprise.

"I am."

John glanced sideways to look at the pistol he had pushed it away. Rodney followed his gaze to the gun that was still held in the space to the side. "This would tend to prove otherwise." The Colonel released his grip on McKay's arm and with an apologetic and worried look crossing his face the scientist lowered the gun to his holster. His thumb moved quickly over the safety switch at the top of the grip as it slid into place.

"Did you find anyone?" McKay asked as he looked back at Sheppard who was now walking past him to look over the equipment in the room. He picked up a tablet sitting on the counter and looked at the black screen. With his free hand he pressed the power button –it made a click—but the screen remained black. He tried again, this time holding it in for a second. The computer still remained off.

"Out of power." John stated growing more concerned and furrowing his brow as he wondered what could have happened. Turning back to the entrance of the tent he strode towards it. The other man kept quiet as he stepped aside to let him past and followed him outside.

As they made their way out of the tent, the sun peeked from behind a cloud and Rodney squinted at the brightness. He shielded his eyes with a hand then looked down to find his shades in his jacket pocket as John pushed his down from the top of his head. McKay wished he had thought of that before as he glanced across his uniform trying to remember where he had put his glasses. A quick gentle pat down of his jacket and he found the familiar shape of the frame in his left breast pocket. Sliding his fingers under the covering, he tore through the velcro holding it in place and gripping the metal frame pulled them free. Still one handed he flicked them open and carefully navigated them over his eyes.

As the glasses began to filter the sun's rays, he noticed that Ronan had finished searching the camp and was talking to Sheppard. The pair looked rather serious, but then again, to Rodney they were serious most of the time. He began to walk over and as he got closer he heard more about what the two men were saying.

"Just over there." Ronan murmured in his usual gravelly tone and pointed to an area behind him to the west. "That's where it seems to have started. The tents and equipment look like they've been abandoned. The rest of the base is pretty much the same. There are no signs of weapons fire. I'd say Wraith."

He lowered his hand as Rodney turned his head in an effort to see where Ronan had been pointing, but tents, scattered furniture, and equipment stood in the way. He pulled his head back down and turned to the group as a wondering gaze brushed across his face.

John recognised the stare on the scientist's face he had seen it many times before. Usually it didn't bother him what he was worried about, but this, this bothered him. His mind had already raced through–and discounted–most of the ideas already. Nothing fit the profile of what they were seeing. Even with a Wraith attack he would expect the camp in more disarray, but compared to previous standards it was fairly tidy.

"Do you know anyone, or anything, that could do this and leave the camp this way?" Sheppard asked to all present, but more towards Ronan as he was more experienced in such matters.

Ronan simply shook his head with a look of ambiguity in his eyes that John didn't find comforting. He looked over at McKay who shrugged.

_Great. Even more uncertainty. _He thought to himself as he turned his head back towards the direction of the gate. "We should report back to Atlantis…" Sheppard didn't even finish his sentence when a buzzing noise appeared from overhead. The three men looked upwards. Sheppard and Ronan reached for their weapons and pointed them towards the sky as they waited for the noise to get closer. They scanned the clouds with their eyes and their guns as the screeching grew louder.

It definitely wasn't a Wraith ship. It may have been similar, but all three of them knew from experience that a Wraith ship didn't sound like that.

They waited, scanning the skies as the sound grew louder.

As the three men looked into the sky with the sunlight blinding them, a small black vessel skimmed fast overhead. Turning on the spot they watched as it sped into the distance and swung back around. Their faces dropped in surprise as they watched the ship perform a hundred and eighty degree turn, flipping almost directly on top of itself as it accelerated back towards them.

Without hesitation, the men struck themselves into an attack stance and fired on the approaching enemy. Bullets whizzed through the air and appeared to impact the surface of the object . To their surprise the ship kept coming and there was no sound of the projectiles making contact. No metallic clang, no explosion, nothing. They all saw the shots hit but it was as if the small object simply absorbed the bullets. As if in response to this, the vessel slowed instantly and hovered above them. Sheppard and the two men kept their guns pointed as a green beam of light emanated and engulfed them.

John felt himself fading and looked down to see his legs and lower torso disappearing, "What the hell?" He exclaimed in surprise as Ronan and McKay looked down to see the same thing happening to them. The dematerialisation flowed up their bodies until they were completely gone. The beam of light coming from the ship retracted and it took off as quickly as it had arrived and flew into the distance.

As the vessel exited the atmosphere of the planet, a larger craft was stationed ahead. The object was almost the size of the moon itself. As the small fighter drew closer to its destination the target began to fade and materialize as the result of the sunlight being reflected off its hull. The smaller ship slowed its approach and vanished into an opening that closed as quickly as it had come into existence. The hatch had barely shut when the larger craft turned and shimmered into the black of space.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Sorry everyone that this one has taken a while to upload the next chapter. This one caused me to get a little headache-y. I'm pretty sure I back properly now, and my New Years resolution is to write everyday. So I should be able to get a the next one up sooner. **

**As usual, this is thanks to the beta readings from Arones.. Hope you enjoy.**

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The click of Sam's heels echoed through the empty hallway as she neared the control tower. She rounded a corner, the woman noticed Doctor Keller ahead of her in mid discussion with another SG member. Carter noticed a small eyebrow raise from Jennifer as the crew member she couldn't identify continued talking. Smiling, she stepped up onto the stairwell and waved her hand at the doctor to call her over. Sam continued her way up the stairs, noticing from the corner of her eye, Jennifer placing her hand on the man's shoulder and stepping away before running down the corridor. Standing on the stairs as she ran—to maintain the ruse that she was needed—Sam waited for her friend to reach her. Jennifer almost leapt onto the stair beside Carter as she slowed to a halt.

"Thank you, Keller stated, catching her breath as the two women began to make their way up to the control room that was awaiting them.

"You're welcome. It seemed like you needed a way out, The Commander replied as she stepped off the last step and into the main control room that was strangely quiet.

Jennifer stepped up behind her. "You have no idea."

The doctor began as they walked over to the station where Chuck was sitting watching the monitor. "That guy's only been here for three days, and he already has an opinion on everything."

Chuck swivelled in his chair at the sound of the conversation behind him.

"Is that Dr Greenburg?" he asked inquisitively. Jennifer nodded. The technician returned her nod with one of his own.

"I know. He's already turned in a proposal to cycle the power generation so that everyone can have more sufficient lighting in their quarters." Chuck sighed.

The Commander ignored him as she spoke. "So what have we got, Chuck?"

He swivelled back in his chair and began to manipulate the controls until an image of the solar system appeared on the screen beside them, replacing the image everyone was looking at. A blue dot blinked onto the screen.

"This is where we are right now." Chuck told her and turned another dial. The image pulled out and a second solar system sat beside the first. This time marked with a green dot.

"And that? The unknown ship?" Sam asked as her brow furrowed with worry.

The technician nodded an agreement. "It's moved position. It's now closer to the city."

Without taking her eyes away from the screen Sam replied. "Not unexpected. I assume we're still cloaked?"

Chuck replied affirmatively. Reaching over, he depressed a button at the edge of his console. Another green dot appeared not far away from the source, and with dotted green line between them. "This line represents the path of the ship to its current location." He paused momentarily before continuing. "The gaps indicate what looks like a hyperspace jump."

Sam had forgotten Jennifer was there, but she spoke up before the Commander could answer. "Sorry, but I thought we could detect ships in hyperspace? Why the gaps?"

She turned to look behind her and then back at Chuck who was still seated. "Doctor Keller brings up a good point. Why can't we see the hyperspace signature?"

The technicians face grew more concerned as he spoke. "The ships energy signature from these jumps doesn't match anything we have on record. It doesn't even act like a hyperspace jump as we know it."

Sam's expression turned into one of worry. "What about some form of FTL drive?"

The technician shook his head in response as he moved back to his seat. "I'm afraid not, Commander. The city sensors can detect all known forms of faster than light travel. So, either they're stopping or starting as they move, or this isn't a known form of travel."

Sam heard a tremble in his voice as he trailed off. She didn't really blame him; she was starting to get worried herself. _What was this ship? _ She thought to herself as she stared intently at the screen.

"The only thing we have to go on." He stated quickly, breaking Sam's concentration. "Is this."

Sam moved over to stand beside the console as he pressed another dial, this time activating the small monitor on the panel. They watched the monitor with interest, even Doctor Keller, who had moved to stand behind the technician. On the screen, they observed a small violet coloured energy burst surround the deep black vessel before the ship, and its wake, disappeared. Turning to look up at the both the woman standing behind him, he added, "That was an enhanced computer simulation based on what little data we have. All of that energy was outside the visible spectrum."

Looking more puzzled, Sam asked the only thing that she could think of. "So, anyone in the vicinity wouldn't see anything? The ship would just disappear?" The crease in her brow became more defined. Her stomach churned as something clicked in her mind, and she looked back at the map on the main display. The ship was hovering around a planet. She hoped she was wrong.

"What planet is that ship at?" she asked Chuck hurriedly.

He turned to manipulate the controls before he responded. "Planet designation is, P5X-394". "Outpost Five." He fell quiet as he said the last words.

"What's on outpost five?" Jennifer asked, glancing back and forth between the two of them as if that would make them answer quicker.

"Dial the gate, now!" Sam commanded as she darted across to the railing at the edge of the room. As the gate connected, she had her hand up to her earpiece. Activating it, she called into the radio,. "Colonel Sheppard. Do you copy?"

She held her breath and waited for the response she hoped would come. Static filled the line as they waited. She tried again.

"Outpost five, please respond. This is Atlantis."

Again they listened to static as they waited. The Colonel waved her hand at Chuck and gave him a signal to shut down the gate. It shut off with a hiss, and she tapped the radio once again. "Major Lorne. Ready your team and a jumper for departure."

Right away, a voice came back, acknowledging the signal, and the connection was closed.

Sam walked out of her office and watched as the jumper lowered into the gate room. The gentle sounds of the engines warming up made her nervous as she looked at Lorne in the pilot seat through the large clear window of the ship. The Commander raised a hand and activated the com link. "Major Lorne. You have a go. God speed."

Closing the radio channel, she watched as the small vessel passed through the rippling blue puddle, hoping that the sentiment would give them as much luck as when Hammond had said it on their trips through the gate. She smiled at the memory as it shut down with a hiss.

As they came through the other side of the wormhole, the puddle jumper shimmered and disappeared as Major Lorne engaged the cloak. A sensor on the ships display blinked as they flew away, indicating that the portal had shut down. The team buzzed over the tops of the scattered trees as Lorne flew toward the location of the outpost. The young lieutenant in the co-pilot seat peered through the view screen window as they neared the white cloth tents that spread across the camp site.

"Sir, Why didn't we engage the cloak before entering the gate?" he asked turning in his seat to face the Major before finishing his sentence. "I mean, if this is a rescue mission."

"Haven't been on many jumper missions, have you, Jim?" Lorne asked but kept his attention to the on his flight path.

"No Sir." Came the slightly nervous reply.

"I'll spare you the long lecture that McKay gave when we came to Atlantis." He started as smirk grew across his lips. "But basically, the cloak mechanism interferes with the way the gate reads the patterns it transmits."

He paused briefly as he turned the jumper controls to avoid a small flock of birds that were flying ahead of them. "Let's just say it would be a very bad thing."

Jim nodded and turned his seat back around to the front.

"Can you see any signs?" Lorne asked the young lad who leant over the panel in front of him and brought up the displays.

"Nothing moving down there at all, Sir," he replied with a tremble in his voice that Lorne couldn't decide if it was fear or concern the man was showing. "Do you think the team will be okay?" He added, turning to once again glance out the front as the Major slowed and came in to land at edge of the camp. The puddle jumper engines let out a gentle whine as they touched the ground. At the back of the ship, one of the team pushed the door release, and the back hatch dropped down with a hiss of hydraulics.

Lorne turned his chair sideways. As he stood, one of the men passed him a gun which he clipped to his chest as he flashed a small smile at Jim who stood, preparing to exit with them.

"I'm sure the team will be fine. After all, they've been through worse." Lorne added as he adjusted the strapping on his gun. The smile faded as he exited the vehicle. He hoped that what he said was right. Raising his weapon, the Major gave the order and proceeded to make his way around the ship toward the camp entrance across from the landing zone. Two of his team—including the young inexperienced lieutenant—followed up behind, while the other two walked and headed over to another section of the camp.

The first thing Lorne noticed upon entering the camp was the silence. The only sound was a whistling from the breeze that blew past them and ruffled the edges of the makeshift buildings. Lorne led the other two men around the camp; the area was tidy except for the occasional piece of small lab equipment littered about. They walked by a few more tents until they circled back to the other two members of the team. The Major lowered his weapon as they approached.

"Any sign of the inhabitants?" he asked while the men following him continued to search.

"No, Sir." The officer answered back gruffly as he pushed his weapon down and let it hang in front of him. "No one around and no sign of Colonel Sheppard's team, either."

Lorne raised a hand to his neck and held it there as he thought. "This is very strange," he muttered under his breath.

Jim looked over in his direction. "What if they went off somewhere else?" he asked in a way that sounded hopeful.

Before Lorne could answer the large gruff officer grunted a reply. "Colonel Sheppard wouldn't do that without radioing back."

The response seemed to shake up the young man, but the Major interjected.

"All right, there's nothing here," he said aloud, stating the obvious, but it was more for his own piece of mind than anything. "Let's head back to the jumper and radio Atlantis."

Without having to sneak around, it didn't take long before they reached the back hatch of the ship and entered. The gruff voiced officer pushed the button and the hatch retracted as Lorne sat down in the pilot's seat. Grasping the controls, the dashboard came to life, and he pulled the ship into the air. Pulling the vessel in a wide arc, he aimed it back toward the puddle and lowered the cloak in preparation.

"Ensign, dial the gate," he directed to the man beside him who leaned over and began to dial the address.

Up ahead, they saw the wormhole through the view screen as it activated, and the familiar kawoosh erupted from the event horizon. As they neared the event horizon, a jolt knocked them sideways and forced Lorne to adjust their course. Overshooting the gate, he swung the vessel around to see a small black object heading towards them.

It fired.

Lorne slid the jumper aside, but one of the shots grazed the engine compartment, causing the whole ship to shake. Concentrating on the ship, he fired drones. The enemy vessel slipped out of the way of the first, but the second hit the top. As they watched, the drone bounced off the hull and embedded itself into the ground.

"Damn it!" Lorne exclaimed as he steered to avoid another blast from the enemy and activated the radio. "Atlantis. This is Lorne. We are under attack. Prepare to open the shield."

The jumper rolled to the side to avoid another blow as the response came back.

"Jumper One. The doors are open. Come on through."

The channel cut off as the Major narrowly avoided another shot and curved back towards the gate. Knowing that they wouldn't make it through with the ship behind, he slammed on the inertial dampeners and pulled the jumper to a stop. The enemy vessel overshot, and Lorne fired again. The shots hit and bounced off, but it was enough to make the ship veer of course long enough for the team to slide through the event horizon. They made it through and stopped as they entered the gate room. Colonel Carter closed the shield as they came through, and they all waited for the inevitable thud. It never came..

Standing beside Chuck at the control panel, the Commander activated her radio. "Major Lorne. Briefing room. Ten Minutes," she stated a bit more forcefully than she intended before closing the channel without waiting for an acknowledgement.

The technician called after her as she started walking to her office. "Colonel. Should we inform Teyla that her team is missing?"

Sam paused in her tracks and turned back to look at Chuck. "Not just yet. She's got enough to worry about right now. Make sure the infirmary staff are informed to keep it to themselves for now."

She turned to continue to walking, but glanced back over her shoulder.

"And make sure Jennifer knows as well."

Sam turned again and strode across the walkway as she wondered where this new enemy had come from and, more importantly, what they wanted.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Look a new chapter that didn't take a long time to post. Hope you enjoy. =)**

**beta read by Arones, who makes ALL my writing better. **

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Colonel Sheppard's head pounded as he started to come around, acutely aware that he was lying on the floor. He reached up and rubbed his temples, hoping it would help. It helped a little. His eyes adjusted to the darkness as he slowly opened them. He turned his head to get a clearer image of where he was and saw Ronan standing beside a door, which he assumed was locked. Pushing himself up, John sat up with his back against the wall. He could see the room more easily now, and it was definitely a cell. He looked around the small room. _ It was a nice cell,_ he thought to himself. The whole room seemed to flow from wall to ceiling to floor as one continuous piece of metal. The only break in that flow was the door.

"Any idea how long we've been out?" The Commander asked his friend who was trying to pry into the door frame with a small knife. It didn't budge. "On second thought, how do you still have a knife?" he asked, wondering if the headache was making him hallucinate.

The big man shrugged. "Don't know. Guess whoever put us in here doesn't think of it as a threat." An uncommon smile crossed over his face. "They're going to learn otherwise," he added, and the smile vanished as quickly as it appeared.

John's headache started to dissipate, and he made himself stand. As he got to his feet, a sudden realisation struck him. "Where's Rodney?" he asked, realising he wasn't in the room. Ronan nodded his head towards the door.

"They took him a little while ago," he told the Commander who followed his movement toward the door. It only took a couple of steps to reach it in the small area. As he neared, the two men heard a shuffling along the other side. They looked at each other and then back to the door. Sheppard looked over to Ronan as the movement stopped.

"Sounds like they're bringing McKay back. Shame, I was just starting to like it quiet. But don't tell him I said that, I'll never hear the end of it." Ronan nodded in agreement.

The door slid open and into the wall. Two tall, suited people pushed their bedraggled friend into the cell. The doctor fell to the ground, and Sheppard moved down to catch him. "What do you want?" he said as he placed the unconscious man on the floor of the cell. One of the suited figures looked back at him and tilted his head before turning to walk out the door. As he stepped through the entrance, the door slid back into place, and a loud click indicated it was locked. The Colonel looked down at the unmoving figure of his team member; he placed a finger at his neck to feel his pulse. A strong rhythm throbbed over his fingers, and he pulled them away. "McKay!" he called out loudly. Rodney's head jerked to one side as his name was said. Sheppard raised his hand and with a quick movement gave him a gentle slap on the cheek.

The doctor's eyes opened quickly, and he slid himself sideways, away from the palm that had just hit him. As he accustomed himself to the light and the room, he realised where he was. "What the hell was that?" he asked, sitting himself up.

"We were going to ask you the same thing. After all, you're the only one who's been out of this room." Sheppard mentioned while McKay rubbed his face. "Do you remember what they wanted? Who they are?"

Shaking his head, the doctor removed his hands from his face. "They were inside those suits the whole time. I couldn't tell what they wanted. They hooked me up to what looked like a control chair—one that had no control to anything—and began to inject cables into my arm while they looked at a display screen I couldn't see clearly." Rodney held out his arm to show the other two a puncture wound at his elbow joint. Sheppard's look turned to one of worry as he looked at the small hole. An idea that he didn't want to think about popped into his mind.

"I remember something similar happening in an SGC report to SG1. The device that helped them remember what happened in certain memories or something? Could that be what this is? Or something similar?" He wondered out loud. McKay stuck his finger out, waving it in front of the Colonel.

"The Tokra's memory recall device," he replied. "It was used in the foothold situation to convince SG1 that they were in the future." Sheppard nodded, but the doctor didn't notice and continued. "It's possible, but that device could only give information on past memories for specific situations, and you had to think about what you wanted it to show."

"But it's possible?" John asked his friend who nodded in acknowledgement. Sheppard stood up and moved towardthe door, once again looking for a way to open it. Although this time he did so with a more determined look crossing his face. He turned back to look at McKay. "Do you think you could get this open?" The doctor looked at him puzzled before standing and looking over the door.

"Well, I don't see any hatches, or control panels. So, I'm going to say probably not. Why?" he asked while John slid his hand over the surface, trying to feel for a latch.

The Colonel looked up to the ceiling of the cell as he replied. "Think about it, Rodney. They had you connected. If it is a memory recall device of some kind how do you know it's not more advanced, and even if it isn't, they might have information from your memory about Atlantis."

McKay's face almost turned white at the thought. He stepped forward and started to join in by feeling the smooth surface for any sign of something that may help them out. As their hands slid along the wall more noise echoed from outside the door. They stepped back. Rodney stepped to the middle of the room while Ronan and Sheppard stood on either side of the entry way. The door slid open. Ronan launched himself at the suited person who entered. His dagger made contact with the front mid-section of the figure's armour. The blade dissolved down to the hilt as it touched. The figure swung his arm and knocked Ronan against the wall.

As his friend fell, Sheppard stepped forward with a punch that knocked the head of the apparent prison guard to the side. The stranger recovered quickly. He stuck out a hand and grabbed the Colonel by the throat, holding him in place. Sheppard struggled to breathe against the assailants grip until he released it and pulled him out the door. The room locked as they walked away, and Dr McKay leant down to check on Ronan who waved him away quickly and pulled himself to his feet.

"You probably shouldn't move," Rodney told him. "You may have a concussion." His large friend grunted something that he couldn't make out, and McKay shrugged his shoulders. The two of them moved over to the entry way to keep searching. _What could they possibly want?_ the doctor thought to himself as he searched the wall.

The footsteps echoed down the hallway as Sheppard and his two guards walked. Every few steps, one of his captors prodded him to keep him moving. He looked around as they walked, trying to get a bearing on who this might be. The walls appeared to be the same material as the cell. That same smooth, single piece of material that flowed without seams. The two guards pushed the Colonel around a corner. Ahead of them, a wall appeared to block their way. Sheppard hesitated, and they nudged him forward with a jab to the back. As he neared the wall, it slid sideways to reveal a room. The three of them walked through, and the door slid closed behind them. John looked around the new surroundings. There were what appeared to be computer consoles littering the room. Only two at the front, or what he assumed to be the front, were manned. Both of whom were wearing the same solid black suits and helmets as the others.

Sheppard was pushed into the centre of the room. A chair slid out of the floor as they neared. He was pushed into it. Straps flew out from the arm rests and pulled his arms down. He struggled, but the straps tightened. The two guards that had brought him turned on their heels and left the room. Turning his head, he looked around to see a door open from over to his left. Someone entered through it. John assumed he was the leader due to a coloured stripe across his shoulder. The apparent Commander stepped up to stand in front of Sheppard. He tilted his head to the side as the Colonel stared into his helmet. "The scans of your associate have proven ineffective. You will supply the answers that we wish to know," the voice said through the helmet with a coarse metallic twang.

The Colonel looked down at his straps again and gave them a gentle pull. They tightened as expected, and he looked back up at his captor. "Is this what the chairs for?" he asked as if he was casually asking for a drink.

"Partially," the voice rasped through the helmet. "Now, you will answer the rest."

Sheppard smiled. "Let me guess. You're looking for a good tailor?" he replied with a laugh. In response, a shock came through the chair, and he winced in pain as it flooded through his body. As it settled, he looked up. He noticed the Commander had raised his hand and held a small device.

He lowered his arm as he spoke. "Anything further that doesn't directly answer the questions shall result in punishment." Turning, the masked figure manipulated the controls on the console beside him. On the main screen, the image changed to that of a blue planet. Sheppard recognised the landmarks from the frequent jumper trips he had made. It was the location of Atlantis. He kept a straight face as he stared at the screen and then at his captor.

"Nice planet. Yours?" he asked, knowing the answer but wanting to know the reply.

"No!"

The gravelly voiced Commander adjusted a few more controls on the station, and the screen flashed as it changed. The Colonel gulped quietly and nervously as he saw the outline of the city appear on the screen. A light blipped on the console. The Commander turned.

"I see you recognise it." He said, pushing a button that made the screen centre on the city and zoom in.

Trying to act nonchalant, he shrugged as little as he could, considering he was attached to the chair. "Nope. What is it?" he asked, sounding uninterested.

His captor pressed the button on the remote in his hand, and a jolt of electricity shot through the Colonel's body, making him arch his back off the chair. "Unacceptable answer, Colonel. We know enough about you from your friend. What we don't know is how you managed to find the ancient city or what the state of your defences are."

The Colonel gritted his teeth as he recovered from the shock that felt like it had been larger than the last. _ What the hell has McKay told them?_ he thought to himself as he shook his head to get the feeling away. He looked up at the man questioning him again. "Even if you don't know everything about us, you should know that we would never give that information out, regardless of what you put us through."

Again the chair released a surge, which caused him to buck in response. When it stopped, he realised that it was definitely getting stronger. He didn't know how much more he could take, but he couldn't say anything that could harm Atlantis. "No matter what you do to us, we won't talk," he stated defiantly. This was met with another blast of pain from the chair that caused him to let out a small scream of agony.

Another couple of shocks, and Sheppard still defiantly held his strength, barely. It sounded like his captor was getting annoyed as he heard mutterings under the helmet that were too faint to make out. The Commander leant forward against the console in a pose that looked like he was frustrated. He turned back to look over the Colonel. "Why do you not speak? It is not your true home. Why do you protect it?" he asked, tilting his head to the side questioningly.

Sheppard took a deep breath in. He needed it from all the shocks against him. "How do you know it's not?" he asked back between breaths.

His captor stood back and upright. Reaching up with one hand, he touched the underside of his helmet, and it slid away to reveal human looking features. His eyes widened in surprise as the helmet slid into the rest of the armour and disappeared. Streaks of something black flowed across the newly revealed face and up onto the figure's bald head. The eyes on the man were split between solid black and a brilliant blue shine. He stared down at Sheppard.

"Because it's ours."

The Colonel was stunned. His mouth partially opened as he looked on in surprise. The figure grinned, pushed the remote and a needle shot from the chair into Sheppard's arm. His eyelids grew heavy as the injection took hold.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Ok, I know this has been a while again since I updated, but I have another two chapters ready. **

**They just need editing, so I hope to have them up soon. Hope you enjoy. It's almost to the end of the story. =) **

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"Sheppard!"

The Colonel opened his eyes to see Rodney hunched over him shouting his name. "Sheppard!" he called out again. John winced and turned his head away from the man so close to his face that he could hear him breathe.

"I'm awake, Rodney. I'm awake. Stop yelling, Sheppard shot back as he rolled to his side and sat himself up. "Why are you yelling at me anyway? How long have I been out?"

Doctor McKay glanced over to Ronan as he pulled himself back to a standing position. "They brought you in about an hour ago, I think. It's not like I can actually tell without a watch," he said, adding the last part under his breath. Ignoring the Doctor whining, John attempted to pull himself to his feet. After failing on the first attempt, he grabbed Ronan's outstretched hand. Giving himself a quick dust off as he stood, and an appreciative nod to Ronan for the assist, he reached out slapped McKay on the back of the head.

"What was that for?" Rodney whined as he rubbed the spot.

"That's for giving them information on the city." He told him, sliding his hand into his trouser pocket and looking around the room. "Found anyway out of here yet?" he asked, turning to Ronan who grinned at the sight of Rodney being struck.

Shaking his head, he slid the small blade he was holding in to the lining of his boot. "No," he told the Colonel sharply.

John stared at him for a moment before answering. "Well, that was a quick reply," he said to the fierce looking man standing before him. "No additional comments on that? There's no way we could get out at all?" The big man shook his head again, but this time said nothing. John just smiled.

"It's not like I could help giving them anything." Rodney whined and kept rubbing the patch on the back of his neck. "It was using technology to bring my memories to a display screen. How do you stop that? Besides, I think I gave them enough information to throw them off track." He stood up straight and smiled smugly.

Sheppard stepped forward and brought himself in front of the whiny scientist. "Well, good job throwing them off. They know where Atlantis is."

Catching him off guard McKay furrowed his brow in concern. "They showed you this? Did you admit anything?" he asked, sounding like he blamed the Colonel.

"No, I didn't say anything, Rodney," snapping back. "I didn't have to. The first thing they showed me before the interrogation was the city under some form of scanner. Although, I do think Sam might have cloaked it because the initial screen was just an image of the planet, and it looked live."

"They can detect through the cloak? How?" the doctor asked nervously.

"How? Maybe because they're Ancients, Rodney. It's kind of their thing."

McKay looked shocked. Ronan glanced up from his continued search of the walls surprised and then continued.

"Ancients?" which was about all Rodney could get out of his mouth.

Sheppard nodded. "Yeah. Their Commander removed his helmet, but he didn't look like a regular Ancient. He looked diseased," he said to the doctor whose mouth was still open in surprise.

Rodney shook himself out of the shock. "Oh, this is bad. This is very bad. We have to get out of here now."

John shook his head at him. "Yes, Rodney. What do you think we're trying to do?" he stated as he started to turn and walk back toward the door.

Following him, Rodney kept talking. "You don't understand," he said as they neared the entranceway. "With the cloak deployed, the shield can't be and without the shield Atlantis is basically defenceless. It will be torn apart by even the most basic weaponry…"

Turning, Sheppard raised a finger to stop him from talking. "I know. Then help us find a way out," he told the gibbering man and turned back to once again to examine the door. Rodney looked taken aback and froze for a moment in silence before stepping up to one of the seams separating the door to the wall.

"How long do you think the quiet will last?" Sheppard whispered to Ronan him who smiled.

"Not long."

John put his eye up to a seam on his part of the wall for a closer examination. Sliding his vision along and holding one eye shut, he could see into the gap.

"You know, we have looked at this already," McKay started in as he watched down his side. "I don't know what difference a second look will do. There's no control panel, switch, or any viable way we could open this door."

The other two men turned to look at each other and laughed before continuing their search. McKay watched them puzzled, wondering what the laughter was for. John continued to move his eye slowly along the narrow gap in the wall when he stopped. He stepped back to refresh his eyes not sure what he had seen, then moved forward to look again. "You were saying, Rodney?" he asked.

McKay moved closer. "Why? What have you found?" he asked, looking into the gap where the Colonel had just been. He couldn't see anything and pulled back. Ronan stepped in and looked.

"That might do it," he stated clearly.

Rodney looked confused and glanced back and forth between the two. "What is it? I didn't see anything."

John smiled at him. "There's a small latch in the door frame—barely visible. If Ronan can get his knife in there, with a bit of a push the door might just slide open."

Reaching down, Ronan withdrew a small blade from the inside of his boot. He leaned into the crack in the door frame. Lifting his arm, he positioned the knife into the gap and carefully angled it toward the latch. The tip of the knife caught against it but slipped down. He tried again. This time it slipped up. Ronan mumbled something inaudible under his breath. He pulled the blade back slightly and tried again. This time it made contact and he felt it depress slightly. He nodded to the two men beside him. They placed their hands on the flat surface of the door and attempted to push it sideways. It didn't budge. Ronan tried to get his fingers into the gap as they pushed, but there wasn't enough room. The three men strained as they tried to push the solid door aside before Sheppard backed away from it.

"Hold up. It's not going to move that way," he mentioned, staring at the door as if it was going to open itself. He crossed his arms over his chest. _That door wasn't opening in a hurry._ He thought to himself.

Rodney stepped away from the door, relieved. "You know. It's probably some form of airlock door. Something we'd never get open, even if we had something to grip," he told Sheppard as he stood, looking at the closed entryway.

"Yes, I did realise that, Rodney," snapping back. "But we have to try these things, don't we?"

A scuffling sound made the Sheppard and Rodney back away from the door. Ronan pulled the knife from the crack and slid sideways. The door slid open. Two guards entered the cell. Ronan moved quickly toward the second Ancient guard. He slid his small blade into the neck joint.

The man's knees bent, and he fell to the ground as the first guard turned to see what happened. He stepped toward Ronan. Sheppard held out his hand, motioning to throw the knife. He did. John caught the handle and lifted it to strike the guards neck. He blocked the attack. With the man's back to him, he withdrew another blade from his wrist straps and lunged. The second knife went into the man's neck as easily as the first. The guard fell to ground and collapsed.

"Why didn't you do that the first time?" John asked, holding his arms out wide.

Ronan shrugged as he slid the knife back into his wrist sheath. "They weren't looking at you before," he replied as he neared the door and looked out. It started to slide back into place. He stepped into the corridor, and the other two darted through the gap, McKay only just making it before the door clicked into place.

"Well, that was close," Rodney said aloud, watching it close and then looking down the hallway.

"If you didn't have that extra sandwich before we left, it might not have been," John joked, as they started down the corridor slowly. Ronan let out a chest laugh at the reference.

Rodney looked insulted as he walked behind them down the hall. "I'll have you know that it wasn't that much, and anyway, it was a couple of hours ago."

They rounded the corner at the end of the hall. A few feet in, they heard footsteps. Sheppard pushed on a nearby access door. It opened, and the men ducked inside. John held the frame open just enough to see out. He watched as two men walk past. It looked like a standard patrol of the area. _We should move before they find us missing._ He told himself as he peered out from around the door frame. Waving a hand behind him, he signalled Ronan and McKay that it was clear.

"Come on. We have to hurry," he said, walking out of the room. "They could find out we're gone at any time." He turned to see Ronan behind him and no Rodney. He stepped back into the room, "Rodney. Hurry up."

He saw the doctor standing beside a desk and looking at a computer screen. He looked up when Sheppard came back to the room. "This is in interesting. Check this out." He waved the Commander over to him.

John signalled Ronan to enter the room, and they closed the door as he walked toward the desk. "What have you got, Rodney?" he asked, picking up what appeared to be just a research paper of some kind.

The doctor pointed at the screen in front of him. "I found a ship schematic. It looks like there's a fighter bay a little bit down the hall from here."

The Colonel looked at him perplexed. "You couldn't have mentioned this as we were moving?" he asked as he moved around to get a look at the plans on the screen. "Does this terminal have connection to the main ship systems?"

Rodney nodded. "I believe so." Leaning forward, he tapped away at the console. "What do you want to do?"

"Can you send a message to Atlantis?" John asked as he looked back toward the door. Ronan stood beside it looking out. He turned his attention back to McKay. "We need to warn them about the ship."

Changing the display on the screen, he stopped when he reached the right one, staring at the screen for a second to read the text. "It looks like I can get limited control to that system. The rest seems to be locked down with a recursive algorithm."

The Colonel's eyes lit up, "Morse code." He said quickly. "Can you send it in Morse Code so they don't see it?"

Nodding and turning back to the console, McKay began to type again. The screen flashed. "Okay, what do you want to say?" he asked as he looked around his shoulder to Sheppard who paused in thought briefly before replying.

"Keep it short. In danger. City visible. Raise shield," he told Rodney, who started to type as John added, "Add your security code for authentication, and hurry it up."

The doctor nodded and began to type quickly on the console as Sheppard moved over to Ronan and the door. The Colonel pulled the door open a fraction and peered out. The corridor was still empty. He let it fall back into place as he turned back to the computer console behind him. "Hurry, Rodney. We need to get out of here before they notice we're missing."

Hitting a key, McKay stepped back and ducked under the console, returning momentarily with a small crystal in hand. "I'm done," he called out as he stepped toward the two men at the door.

"What's that?" John asked, pointing a finger at the crystal grasped in McKay's hand as Ronan started to make his way out of the room.

"Computer memory crystal." McKay replied as they followed Ronan and ran down the hallway.

Following around the next two corners, they entered a large room. A column of empty space went straight up the centre. Circling around it was the floor holding a half dozen of the same fighter ships that had captured them. The three of them ran to one of the vessels nearby. Looking around the outside of it, they could see no way in. No seams. No hatches. Nothing that looked like it would open.

"Well, this was a great idea," McKay snapped, stepping back from the small craft.

Sheppard ducked underneath it and continued looking across its surface. "There must be a way. Someone must have been flying the one that picked us up.

Taking a step forward, McKay approached the small craft. Another step and the crystal in his hand began to glow. It grew brighter the closer he got. Standing next to the vessel the top of it slid away to reveal what looked to the doctor like a cockpit. He looked down at the crystal in surprise as Sheppard moved around beside him and pulled himself up on the edge of the revealed opening.

"How'd you do that?" He asked, turning his head to look back then looked around the empty cockpit.

Rodney pulled the crystal up to his face and looked into it. "I'm guessing some form of sympathetic energy," he replied a little puzzled.

"Someone's coming," Ronan called out, turning his head away from the door he was watching and moving over to the ship.

Dropping down from the cockpit, he grasped the crystal in Rodney's hand. "Could this make that ship work?" he asked, looking into the doctor's eyes.

"Possibly," came the response from McKay who looked down at the crystal and back to the Colonel.

Releasing his hand, Sheppard nodded in the direction of the vessel, "Get in," he said sharply. "It's going to be tight, but it should fit all of us."

Worried at the thought, Rodney stepped closer and reached to pull himself into the cockpit. Upon touching the edge of the opening, the edge gave way. A section slid down to the ground to create an entry ramp. Walking cautiously, McKay inched forward and into the back of the craft's opening. Sheppard waved Ronan to follow. The large man followed up with a scowl that was directed to the Colonel. He sat himself in front of the doctor as Sheppard stepped up to what could only be called the pilot seat. Although, it wasn't much of a seat, more a box on the ship's floor.

Sheppard awkwardly reached behind him. "McKay, pass the crystal."

Struggling in his cramped position behind Ronan, he stretched his arm passed it toward the Colonel. Ronan carefully moved his arm to take the object and pushed it into Sheppard's awaiting grasp.

Pulling his arm to the front, he moved the still glowing stone near the dashboard. The surface appeared to reshape itself into button like objects. What looked like a control column sprung up from the floor. Sheppard grasped it with one hand and pulled back on it. The ship took off at a sharp angle, and he struggled with the control stick. He dropped the gem in his lap to use both hands. The small craft bucked from side to side as it dropped down the central column. Upon nearing the base of the ship, a canopy slid across their heads, and the vessel slipped out through the black veil covering the opening.

They dropped out into normal space. John let out a breath. He knew he was lucky that they hadn't been travelling through hyperspace. Taking off into that would have torn them to pieces. Clearing his mind, he concentrated on their current location. A small heads up screen floated in the space above the console. He was surprised as he looked at the map displayed and he realised that they were in orbit of Atlantis. With a twist of the stick, he tried to aim toward the planet and began to concentrate—the same as he did with the jumpers. The craft didn't respond to that and bucked from side to side as they approached the planet.

_Obviously, not exactly like the jumpers. _He thought to himself, as he tried to steady the vessel with the stick. It barely moved, but he managed it a little. The angle of entry was neither smooth—nor straight—as they entered the atmosphere. John fought the control harder to stay on course to the city, but the ship seemed to fight against it. Sheppard pulled back on the stick as it neared the waters surrounding Atlantis, and the craft crashed into the sea a few hundred metres away. "Closest I could get," he told the other two as the ship started to sink beneath the waves.

"Not again," Rodney sighed.


End file.
